Review of McCarten's Book on the Two Popes Gerry O'Shea
Anthony McCarten, a
distinguished novelist and screenwriter
from New Zealand, is best known for his celebration of the genius of Stephen
Hawking in The Theory of Everything ,
and for highlighting the crucial
importance of Winston Churchill's
eloquence in defeating the Nazis
in The Darkest Hour. His latest work The Pope: Francis, Benedict and the Decision that Shook the World attempts to explain the ramifications of
having two popes, one in his early 80's and the other ten years older, both active
within the narrow confines of the Vatican.
These two men, Joseph
Ratzinger or as he is now titled emeritus Pope Benedict and Jorge Bergoglio , Pope Francis, represent two
different approaches to the Roman version of Christianity. Ratzinger is a
brilliant German theologian, a rather dour and introverted academic with little
pastoral experience, while Bergoglio, comes across as a charismatic and fun-loving Argentinian whose
idea of Christ's church centers not in teasing out the layers of meaning in
various Catholic dogmas but in working
with the poor in the slums of Buenos Aires.
Shakespeare's line in Hamlet, "The apparel oft proclaims
the man" is relevant in considering
the two church leaders. Benedict is a fastidious dresser with a preference for
wearing red velvet slippers and using a
personalized perfume. On the other hand, Francis is reputed to be uncomfortable
donning multi-colored papal regalia,
preferring a simple white cassock, and supposedly using the same black shoes for twenty years.
McCarten explains clearly the major theological difference between the two
leaders. Ratzinger is a conservative, devoted to the ageless wisdom he finds in
the long traditions of the Catholic church. Above all, he rejects relativism
which seeks to adapt church teaching to comport more closely with the complex
human demands of modern life. For instance, for Benedict divorce is always
inadmissible for Catholics and, in his eyes, that rule is written in stone and
can never change. Again, he considers homosexual behavior an abomination and
intrinsically corrupt so a different humanistic
perspective that views same-sex love as morally permissible and even praiseworthy
can never have a place in Ratzinger's understanding of Christian morality.
Bergoglio is much less
dogmatic in his beliefs. He advocates for allowing a divorced person in a
steady new relationship to receive communion. Opponents quickly condemned him
for veering from church practices which preclude a person in what they consider
an adulterous relationship from participating at the Eucharistic table.
Not long after taking over
the papacy he gave a clear indication of following a different path in dealing
with the issue of gays in the church. "Who am I to judge," he asked.
Everybody took this as a clear indication that he did not share the narrow opinion
of his predecessor who repeatedly
characterized homosexuals as "objectively disordered."
McCarten does not focus much
on the economic and social policies of his subjects. In his two important encyclicals, Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel)
and Laudato Si, in Praise of our Common Home, Francis is very critical of
the capitalist system which he argues very cogently massively favors the rich
and pays little attention to protecting God's creation. Benedict, true to his
conservative principles, has much less to say about inequality or the urgent moral mandate to protect the
environment.
The author focuses a great
deal on papal infallibility, the dogma passed by the First Vatican Council at
the behest of Pius 1X in 1870. McCarten, in the weakest part of his book,
wonders how the two popes, spoken of as infallible in matters relating to faith
and morals, could differ so much on important ethical issues.
The Council that passed this
edict has been justifiably criticized for a major display of hubris in
ascribing infallibility to any human being in any circumstance or on any
subject. Having said that, the ecclesial use of infallibility is very
circumscribed; in fact, it was only used once since Pius 1X and that was when
Pius X11 in 1950 asserted the dogma of
Mary's Assumption into heaven.
Mr. McCarten seems confused
about this subject as if infallibility involves some kind of a divine wind that
touches the soul of every new pope, bringing a dose of incontrovertible
heavenly wisdom. He rather whimsically wonders if an emeritus pope still has
this special gift! And the author is mistaken when he declares that Benedict
spoke infallibly in condemning the gay
lifestyle.
McCarten believes that they
both carry a big "sin" from their past that has left a deep mark on
their psyches. Ratzinger was Archbishop of Munich from 1977 to 1982. During
that time a priest named Fr. Hullermann
was abusing children - and actually admitted he had a serious problem. He was
sent for psychiatric help but was re-assigned after a short period of treatment
- against the verbal and written advice of the psychiatrist. Ratzinger moved on
to the Vatican in 1982 and denied he knew anything about the Hullermann case.
That priest continued his depraved behavior in
other parts of Germany for 30 years
after he first admitted abusing boys, and he wasn't finally stripped of his
priestly faculties until 2010. What
responsibility did Ratzinger have in this case? What did he know and
when did he know it?
Mr. McCarten credibly
speculates that Benedict's decision to retire in the Vatican rather than in his
homeland could well reflect a fear that he could be summoned to appear in a
German court for not protecting children under his care in the early 80's.
Bergoglio was ordained a
priest at age 33 in 1969. Four years later he was appointed provincial of the
Jesuits in Argentina. He was in charge when the so-called Dirty War started in
1976. The raison d'etre given for that war by the military government, supported by Washington, was that they wanted
to end the power of Marxists and other left-wing extremists.
In reality, the ruling junta
started a reign of terror where death squads hunted down political dissidents,
including moderate trade unionists, writers and, indeed, anybody deemed to have
vaguely socialist tendencies. A new group, identified as the Disappeared entered
the local lexicon. It consisted of thousands of victims whose bodies were
horribly tortured and then dumped in the ocean or in secret graves by the government goons.
Bergoglio faced terrible
dilemmas every day. Hundreds of priests
including two Jesuits were tortured; many were disappeared or executed. He knew
some of the powerful generals and pleaded for the release of those who were
imprisoned. He even said mass for General Videla, the top man in the
government, urging him to ameliorate the prisoners' treatment in detention.
The two Jesuits bitterly
criticized his stance with the military and never forgave his dalliance with
evil, arguing that the Jesuits should have clearly and publicly condemned the
slaughter of innocent people.
The future pope faced a
devil's choice: criticize the junta and probably end up in prison or stay quiet
and try to have a moderating voice inside the corrupt administration, but by
doing this he must have known that he invited the serious charge of
collaboration with the torturers.
In a life and death situation, compromise is a
poor option. McCarten believes - again credibly - that Francis' frequent
statements that he is a sinner should not be understood as the general
confession of imperfection by all humans but rather a direct reflection on the
human consequences of his fearful choices during the dark days of the Dirty
War.
The author describes clearly
the weaknesses and strengths of both men, neither one of whom wanted the
papacy. I look forward to the movie based on the book which is due out this
year with Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce in the main parts.
Perhaps Mr. McCarten should consider a sequel
involving two other popes who had a massive influence on the 20th century: the
ascetic and devout Pius X11 whose role in the Vatican during the Hitler years
is very controversial, and his successor, the humble and well-grounded John
XX111, whose spiritual vision insisted on opening the dusty ecclesiastical
windows on all sides of the church and ushered in the epoch-changing Second
Vatican Council.
Gerry O'Shea blogs at wemustbetalking.com
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